Natasha Bogdanova has started out well in the FIBA U19 World Championships, leading Russia with 29 points (co-leading with Viktoriya Kulomzina) and 15 boards. In a 98-65 opening loss to the United States, Natasha led the team with 12 points and seven boards. She shot just 1-of-5 from inside the arc, but hit 1-of-2 from the perimeter and made 7-of-8 freethrows.
In game 2 on Saturday, Russia bounced back to beat Korea 98-77. Kulomzina led Russia with 23 points, followed by Natasha's 17 points and eight boards. Her shooting improved to 6-of-11 from the field, plus she added 5-of-7 from the freethrow line.
Russia will play the Republic of Congo on Sunday, take Monday off, then play Serbia & Montenegro on Tuesday and Puerto Rico on Wednesday to round off preliminary pool play. The top four teams in each of two six-team groups will advance to the quarterfinals following pool competition.
Through two games, Russia is sitting in a four-way tie for second in Group A with a record of 1-1 with Serbia & Montenegro, Puerto Rico and Korea. Congo has yet to win a game, and the U.S. team sits alone at the top at 2-0.
Congo, Russia's next opponent, was blown out by the U.S. 124-37 on Saturday. No player on the Congo squad scored over eight points in the game.
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